Individual Details
William Bartholomew Stafford
(Nov 1822 - 26 Sep 1883)
From his obit, he was born mid Nov 1822. We have found that he purchased 40 acres in Dekalb Co. IL on 1 July 1845. He married Pauline Huggins 9 July 1845; said to have been born in New York about 1828. The 1850 census shows WBS a farmer in Kingston Twp, DeKalb IL with Pauline + 3 kids. In the 1860 census WBS is a stone mason with Pauline and 7 children living in Winnebago Co, IL - including one son named Frank (Willie). Something terrible must have happened as only Willie (and WBS) appear later (see Pauline Huggins for further details).
WBS married Caroline (Carrie) Durham in Dayton, Nevada on 13 Nov. 1864 - this was gold rush country then. Apparently William B. went west to join his brother George Washington Stafford in the gold fields (see story of G W S). George W. Stafford was a witness on their marriage certificate. Carrie lost her first husband, left her 2 boys with her parents and went west - how she met WBS is unknown, but school teachers were in very high demand in the gold rush towns. The 1870 census shows the family in Oakland, CA - WBS, Carrie & children Willie, Fred and George (the first 2 of their 3 children) plus Edward Durham and Charles Durham - the children of both their previous marriages are now with WBS & Carrie. WBS's brother had left the gold country in 1868 (for Postville, Iowa), so it appears WBS and family moved to Oakland, CA (1870 census).
It is interesting to note that Fred A Stafford (1866) was born in Dayton, NV and George (1869) was born in Illinois (the father Moses died in 1862, but mother Sarah and a brother still lived in Illinois; Sarah later moved to Postville and is buried there). The 1870 census shows them in Oakland, CA. Their last child was Herbert Henry born 30 Aug 1871 in Reno, NV. The 1880 census shows them in Wilber NE - living there was Willie Durham (then 21), Fred (13), George (11) and Herbert (8) - the two Durham boys have left (in 1910, Edward W was in West Roxbury, MA and Charles A was in Limona, FL). They moved into Wilber about 1867 or '68 and purchased a house (still standing - see picture) on May 1879 (date of house purchase).
Stories of WBS from my (Roger S.) grandfather Herbert were wonderful. He told us his father built stone sluices in the gold fields, and injured himself lifting a heavy stone when a worker would or could not do it. He said they first lived in a sod house on a homestead near Wilber, NE ( no records of their farm or homestead were found in the Wilber court house in a 2008 search). Grandfather Herbert hunted grouse with a double barrel shotgun (muzzle loaded), and when I saw it (about 1948 in Keokuk, IA) the breech was burned or rusted through and unsafe. When I was little, grandfather gave me a bear tooth his father gave him - to hang around my neck. This is currently displayed in family treasures along with a gold one dollar coin of his (see photo).
WBS married Caroline (Carrie) Durham in Dayton, Nevada on 13 Nov. 1864 - this was gold rush country then. Apparently William B. went west to join his brother George Washington Stafford in the gold fields (see story of G W S). George W. Stafford was a witness on their marriage certificate. Carrie lost her first husband, left her 2 boys with her parents and went west - how she met WBS is unknown, but school teachers were in very high demand in the gold rush towns. The 1870 census shows the family in Oakland, CA - WBS, Carrie & children Willie, Fred and George (the first 2 of their 3 children) plus Edward Durham and Charles Durham - the children of both their previous marriages are now with WBS & Carrie. WBS's brother had left the gold country in 1868 (for Postville, Iowa), so it appears WBS and family moved to Oakland, CA (1870 census).
It is interesting to note that Fred A Stafford (1866) was born in Dayton, NV and George (1869) was born in Illinois (the father Moses died in 1862, but mother Sarah and a brother still lived in Illinois; Sarah later moved to Postville and is buried there). The 1870 census shows them in Oakland, CA. Their last child was Herbert Henry born 30 Aug 1871 in Reno, NV. The 1880 census shows them in Wilber NE - living there was Willie Durham (then 21), Fred (13), George (11) and Herbert (8) - the two Durham boys have left (in 1910, Edward W was in West Roxbury, MA and Charles A was in Limona, FL). They moved into Wilber about 1867 or '68 and purchased a house (still standing - see picture) on May 1879 (date of house purchase).
Stories of WBS from my (Roger S.) grandfather Herbert were wonderful. He told us his father built stone sluices in the gold fields, and injured himself lifting a heavy stone when a worker would or could not do it. He said they first lived in a sod house on a homestead near Wilber, NE ( no records of their farm or homestead were found in the Wilber court house in a 2008 search). Grandfather Herbert hunted grouse with a double barrel shotgun (muzzle loaded), and when I saw it (about 1948 in Keokuk, IA) the breech was burned or rusted through and unsafe. When I was little, grandfather gave me a bear tooth his father gave him - to hang around my neck. This is currently displayed in family treasures along with a gold one dollar coin of his (see photo).
Events
| Birth | Nov 1822 | Rochester, Monroe Co., NY | |||
| Census | 23 Nov 1850 | Kingston TWP, DeKalb Co., IL |  | ||
| Census | 28 Jul 1860 | Rockford, Winnebago Co., IL | | ||
| Marriage | 16 Nov 1864 | Dayton, NV - Pauline C. Huggins | |||
| Marriage | 18 May 1867 | Dayton. NV - Caroline Elizabeth "Carrie" Sanders | | ||
| Census | 14 Jun 1870 | Oakland, Alameda Co., CA | | ||
| Census | 1880 | Wilber, Saline Co., NE | | ||
| Death | 26 Sep 1883 | Wilber, NE | |  | |
| Burial | Sunny Side cemetery, Wilber, NE | ||||
| Occupation | |
Families
| Spouse | Pauline C. Huggins (1828 - ) |
| Child | Frank H. "Willie" Stafford (1859 - ) |
| Spouse | Caroline Elizabeth "Carrie" Sanders (1827 - 1910) |
| Child | Herbert Henry "Burt" Stafford (1871 - 1952) |
| Father | Moses Stafford (1786 - 1862) |
| Mother | Sarah Stafford (1790 - 1873) |
| Sibling | Mehitable "Isabel" Stafford (1809 - 1878) |
| Sibling | John George Stafford (1821 - 1890) |
| Sibling | George Washington "M. G. W." Stafford (1829 - 1892) |
Notes
Census
Listed as W. B. Stafford, farmer, with wife Pauline Huggins with children Sarah (1846), Alma (1848) and Georgiana (1850).Census
Listed as William Stafford, stone mason, wife Paulina, and children Sarah C., Alina L., Georgiana, Minerva, William J., Frank H. (Willie), and HuldaMarriage
They were married by Rev. A. J. Hitchcock and witnessed by George W. Stafford and Jack W. Watis, see photo copy of wedding certificate.Census
listed as W. B. Stafford, a plasterer, with wife Carrie E. (school teacher), children Willie (age 14), Fred A. & Geo. B. and apparent stepsons E. W. & Chas A. Durham.Census
listed as W. B. Stafford, a plasterer, with wife Carrie E. and sons Frank H., Fred A., George R. and Herbert H.Death
He was buried in Sunny Side cemetery; the original cemetery deed is available (see photo) - from the records of Herbert Henry Stafford, who replaced the stone about 1950.Occupation
In 1845 he was a farmer in DeKalb Co., IL; in the 1850 census he is a farmer in Kingston twp, DeKalb, IL; the 1860 census he is a stone mason in Winnebago Co., IL; the 1870 census says he is a plasterer, as does the 1880 census.Endnotes
1. , The Opisition, Wilber, Saline county, NE, 27 September 1883.